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Diana Rossini
We just had this conversation in my sibling group chat. Are you a meet a friend on vacation type of couple? Do you guys like meeting other couples on vacation?
Chase Daniel
If we're on, if we're on vacation, between us, just us, yeah, sure. But with kids it's like, ah, I.
Diana Rossini
Always, always meet the clinger. It's just, I can't help it. It's pro. Wait, I just realized, what if I'm the clinger?
Chase Daniel
You. I think you are. Well, I think you got a wrong way.
Diana Rossini
You know, I'm nice and I'm, I'll talk to a wall, but I'm starting to like, reflect on some of my vacations. I think I'm the one that makes the relationship last longer than it probably needs to. Like, it's good to just chat by the pool.
Chase Daniel
Are you the one that asks for numbers?
Diana Rossini
I don't do that.
Chase Daniel
Give me your number. When you're in Vermont and I'm in, I try.
Diana Rossini
We went to the park yesterday. We had somebody ask for our number after our kids were playing. And I just remember like, like why?
Chase Daniel
Yeah, you're not going to make the effort.
Diana Rossini
Where's this going? I don't feel like my son liked your K. Welcome into Scoot City. I'm the athletic senior NFL insider, Diana Rossini.
Chase Daniel
I'm chase Daniel. Played 14 years in the NFL.
Diana Rossini
Man, info is flying. And I know, you know, I'm always texting and chatting and doing my stuff to collect info and it is picking up like my, my phone is starting to burn my ear. But it's good because there's good stuff going on. And you know, a lot of head coaches, GMs are meeting with their staffs today, the next few days, their scouts, and they're just having these really serious conversations about the character, about the type of guys they want to bring in. Here, most teams have an ide of what they're doing and the guys that they're going after, but at the end of the day, no one knows because no one knows how this draft is all going to come together. So I love hearing where these teams are at right now and trying to figure out how this is going to go, because everyone has their own version, their own mock draft, you know. Yeah. So look, we saw reports over the weekend about Derek Carr, that situation in New Orleans, how much this has change things. Right. Like right away, New Orleans is now going to have a lot of questions to answer. So we're to talk about that. They began the first phase of their OTAs along with the Dallas Cowboys. Michael Parsons showed up for that. So all good there. So let's dive into the Saints thing in a minute. And I figured, I know you spent the weekend in paradise, but I know the Masters to you is just the best thing you could be part of or at least view. I have a lot of questions for you about the Masters. Experience. Experience and other sporting events. I thought we'd sort of rank our top three because I think we have very different ideas of what we enjoy to watch as sports fans, because I think if you're a sports journalist and a former player, like, we just have different experiences. So. But with so much going on around football, let's get right to it. Here's what I'm hearing around the league.
Chase Daniel
So the Saints have a major problem with Diana, Derek Carr, the shoulder injury. I think it's a lot of fluff. What in the world is going on with the New Orleans Saints and Derek Carr right now?
Diana Rossini
You use the word fluff. I use the word fishy. Right. So I've spent the last few days digging on the story to just try to figure out what. What's happening here. From what I can gather, it appears the information got out from. From the car side of it that was. That was put out by them. Because I can tell you I had some conversations with people in New Orleans who were aware of it, but they. They weren't looking to put it on blast. There could be a world where the Saints put it out, too. But I really believe that this is coming from Derek Carr because I think he's the one who isn't thrilled with the Saints at this point. Right. And the information was put out that he's dealing with a shoulder injury that may require surgery that could keep him out for this upcoming season. This. After we know that they redid his contract. Yeah, they just redid his Deal. Yeah. And. And the way they did his deal, they restructured it where basically it's in favor of Derek Carr. You know, like the Saints are stuck with him now because they're going to have to pay. They're gonna have a $20.5 million cap hit if they were to move on from him. So they set this thing up to make Derek feel good. He's going to get all his money here. So I thought we'd go back to talking about when they were looking for a new head coach, because let's remember Dennis Allen is why Derek Carr wound up there. Because remember, Dennis Allen was with the Raiders. They had that relationship there. Dennis Allen obviously is no longer there. Kellen Moore takes over before Kellen Moore is hired. We talked about it on the show, we talked about it here on Scoop City. Why I was hearing that Kellen Moore was perhaps a little hesitant to taking the job in New Orleans because of Derek Carr. Let's just take a listen to what we were talking about. Before they made the hire, there was a little scuttlebutt. I hate that word.
Chase Daniel
I actually like that word. Say it again.
Diana Rossini
You like scuttlebutt. Little chit chat about whether or not, you know, if Kellen would want this job. And, and it's due to the fact that they don't have a quarterback already there in place. That was concerning. But that being said, I do think he's come around on it. From what I was hearing of just. All right, maybe. Maybe this is the right spot for me. All right, so there were some question marks, but in the end they hired. I know I'm. I kind of agree with old me. So we were.
Chase Daniel
I like it.
Diana Rossini
Gosh, by the way, that was the winter. So depressing. So let's just start there with the fact that there was some hesitance and Kellen Barr takes the job. They love Kellen there. They've surrounded him with all these veteran coaches and they decided to stick with, with, with Derek Carr. Yet I know that the New Orleans Saints are on a mission to get a quarterback. That, that. That's the facts where in this draft I'm unsure of. I just know they are looking to get a quarterback in this draft. And you can just tell by the fact that they've taken. They've had some of these quarterbacks visit the Saints facility. So pick it up for the Kellen Moore and Carr dynamic here from just like how you see it at this point.
Chase Daniel
Yeah. When he took the job, I mean, I talked to him and you know he, he was really excited about the opportunity to go into be a head coach. Right. There's only 32 opportunities. So as soon as you get an opportunity, like regardless of the quarterback situation, if you're with a team with a good front office and a good team, you're going to figure out the quarterback situation. He obviously knew Derek Carr probably wasn't the long term answer. They were always going to be in the market for a quarterback in this draft. Based on what I was hearing in New Orleans. It's just now at number nine. Okay, that to me is sort of where the draft starts because you could possibly and probably have Shador Sanders there at 9. You could possibly and probably have Jackson dart there. You could possibly probably have all these other guys. Okay, Tyler Schuck, we're going to talk about him like he's a guy that's on the Saints radar in all these situations. How do you see these guys in a Kellen Moore offense? I think Kellen Moore is a great offensive mind. Now we know what he's like as an offensive mind. Right. How do these guys fit in? Derek Carr's not fitting into the equation. There was something that changed from the time he took the job and be like, okay, we can win with Derek Carr, to maybe Derek Carr's camp not being happy. Maybe it's, they told their Cars camp that, hey, we're taking a quarterback. Derek can be the starter for one more year and then we're going to start this other rookie. Like I can imagine something like that going and Derek Carr being like, hold up. I don't want to be a placeholder. I want to have a situation where I can go and I can be a starter for two or three more years in my career. But it's just crazy that it was like the Friday News dump to where I can tell that Kellen Moore and Mickey Loomis, the gm, they're probably on the same page. And that's another thing that people, they don't have to take a quarterback at night. Nine is really rich. What if you ride with Spencer Rattler in a second or third round guy and wait to next year knowing you're probably not going to win a whole bunch of games. And next year there's Drew Aller, next year, possibly Arch Manning, there's a lot better quarterback class. Kate Kubnick is next year as well. So there's a lot of situations going on. To me, if you're number nine, that's sort of the start of the draft because you could see possibly a quarterback Going number nine overall to the New Orleans Saints.
Diana Rossini
Yeah. And maybe this is Derek Carr looking at the situation going, I don't want the Kirk Cousins treatment. I don't want to be your quarterback. You guys draft a young guy coming in here and it's basically of when is he going to play. Right. Which then makes a quarterback room tense. What is that like when a veteran quarterback, like a Derek Carr, who. I think this is out of character for him. For him I understand it if. But, but what is that like in a room where everyone knows essentially what's, what's, what's happening. There's, there's, there's no hiding. It's.
Chase Daniel
Look, I was a part of that room in 2016. It was one of the most awkward rooms I've ever been a part of. You have the number two overall pick, Carson Wentz, probably thinking, hey, I'm going to start right away. Sam Bradford was still on the roster I believe, for a few weeks, if not a month. And that was the OTAs. And Carson had didn't really play at all because he had fractured a rib. So I was the number two. Sam was the number one. The first day of OTAs, we, we split reps. Sam Bradford and I split reps with Carson being the number three. And then all of a sudden, like right before training camp, that dead period. Right. Like right after training camp, right before the season, they trade our guy, Sam Bradford away. Carson Wentz jumps from three to one. But it was just an interesting dynamic because you don't ever want to be looking over your shoulder. Right. And, and that's probably what Derek Carr is doing. He's getting out ahead of this. Like they're probably going to draft a guy. They're probably not going to roll with me. Let me try to find a situation out. It's just all these, I don't know what team he goes to like this year because there's a lot of teams that don't need quarterbacks anymore. The Steelers, the Vikings, the Browns are the three that I think of that probably need quarterbacks that Derek Carr, you get traded to. This is just a full on out, like, hey, I'm going to sit out a year, you still owe me my money. Or if not, let me go get a starting job.
Diana Rossini
Yeah, I, I wonder if there is a little bit of, let's just call it an excuse made here with the shoulder. So Derek doesn't look bad asking for a trade because of the situation.
Chase Daniel
Yeah, I think it makes him look worse, honestly, like if, if you're going to say that. Just say you want to trade. There's plenty of that. And I know he's trying to, like, tiptoe around it, but we view, you know, honesty, like, it's so fitting to be honest nowadays because everyone asks for a trade. You're not the only person to ask for a trade. You're not a bad teammate.
Diana Rossini
And I think people understand it now.
Chase Daniel
It's fishy. Like your word says. It's what was my word? Not what was my word. Do you remember Fluffy. Fluff.
Diana Rossini
Fluffy.
Chase Daniel
Fluffy. Fluffy. I like fluffy and fishy.
Diana Rossini
Fuzzy better. Fuzzy.
Chase Daniel
Like all that situation.
Diana Rossini
I. I will say I did have a lot of text messages and conversations over the last few days about the Derek Carr situation. And it was very hard for me to find someone in football who said, oh, Derek's definitely dealing with a serious shoulder injury. It was no how long you've been doing this. You know what this is about, right? And trade bait, right? End of the day, that's what this is about.
Chase Daniel
You texted me when this went down. You're like, what's happening? I said, this is not normal for, like, you know, Ian Rapport retweeted or tweeted it. I'm like, that for sure had to come from Derek Carr's agent because there must have been like a meeting. Let's get it out right away. Like, let's.
Diana Rossini
It's just, well, look at the time. We're a little over a week away from the draft. Teams are still in need for quarterback. People are making their decisions. Maybe this is to allow teams some flexibility and understanding with what they want to do in the upcoming draft. There's a lot more to the story now, that being said, while this is all happening. So the Derek Carr news comes out, and it was the same day that Louisville quarterback Tyler Schuck was visiting with the New Orleans Saints. He's taken visits with the Cleveland Browns, the New York Giants. And Tyler Schuck is a player in this draft who, I can tell you, a week out from the draft, his stock is rising. He is a name that I am hearing in league circles way more now than I was just three weeks ago in terms of a QB on the board that could be taken in the first round.
Chase Daniel
Wow, that is. That is some news. And honestly, through the whole process of it, like, Tyler Schuck was probably the fourth or fifth quarterback that I watched film wise, because you didn't really hear about him. He was. He's been to Oregon, Texas Tech, he's been to Louisville with a lot of he's got an injury history. He's 25 years old. He's borderline too tall for a quarterback, right?
Diana Rossini
Yeah.
Chase Daniel
Six foot five, six foot five. And that's sort of like the line of demarcation, right, for, for these, for these NFL coaches, they think that like six, five and over guys, if you look at the history of the game, especially like six, six is the number. You're almost too tall, you're almost too flimsy. You're. You're flailing, you're the. They like them a little more compact. But when I watch them, first of all, I don't care about the age, and we talked about this on our last show was like the age of 25. I believe he'll be 26 in his first NFL season. I view it as a pro, I don't view it as a con. This dude just played a lot of football. Now, the injury history gives me a little bit of pause on what's going on. But when you're like this, like, look at Bo nicks. Bonix wasn't 25, but look at the quarterback out of Atlanta, Michael Penix Jr. Right. Like they were both old. He's going to get through his first contract, be 30 or 31, and still get another chance at a second contract. That's what teams want. That's eight years of leeway, which is right in the pro status of like the prime of the quarterbacks. He does have some traits and some qualities that will make you go, wow. Like the way he throws the football, the way the ball comes off of his hand. Those are all well, but at the same time, there's some plays, Diana, that will show up on film that make you go, what is he doing? Like a random, like, freak out. Like he almost is like. It's funny that we're talking about this in the Saints block. He reminds me a little bit of like an early Derek Carr where if he gets pressure, he's just like, oh my gosh, like, truly. Like that's what I see on film, like in a good system though. I mean, he checks all the physical traits. Now mentally, how does he do on the board? But I do think he could be a surprise. Especially I don't think he's going to go into that quarterback three territory where I have Shador Sanders, Jackson Dart sort of at. But I do think he's legitimate at number four, Chase.
Diana Rossini
I had a head coach in the NFL, a current one, tell me that he thinks that Tyler Schuck is the best quarterback in this class. And I even said better than Kev Ward. He said better than Cam Ward. So really this is why the draft is such a gamble. You do, you don't know. You don't know. You have the opinion of one coach saying this and then you have another who, who probably would have a completely different opinion at all this, but just the fact that there's one coach that I spoke to that told me this.
Chase Daniel
Tells me is he going to draft them? I mean, we'll see.
Diana Rossini
We'll see. It wasn't Brian Callahan. I'll let everyone know now. Okay, so look, this is the time of year when this stuff happens. And every year this is what happens about.
Chase Daniel
There's always a surprise.
Diana Rossini
Start hearing these names. We heard Michael Penix last year, we heard Bo Nix. All of a sudden it was like, wait, what? No, where? What? Who? I'm like googling these players that I didn't even know of. And then they go, yeah.
Chase Daniel
I will say the last thing about Chuck is like before we. He is probably Diana, other than Cam Ward, in my opinion the most pro ready to play like right now. Like I've always said on this show, right? Like I think Shador Sanders, Jackson Dart and everyone else, they probably need a year or two to sit now. I don't know if they're going to go in that situation. And quite honestly, quarterbacks are pressed into play. I think Cam Ward's ready to play right now. I think Shador Sanders is close and Jackson Dart maybe needs a year. Other than that, I think like Cam Ward, Tyler Schuck is the most prorated to play.
Diana Rossini
Look, don't ever discount owners on draft night. I have seen this for years where once an owner gets involved, you'll read the board and you think something makes sense and you'll have even intel from my standpoint. And the owner changes everything. If an owner wants them with some organizations, that's what you're gonna get.
Chase Daniel
That's crazy to me because that's not a lot of organizations like a lot of well run organizations.
Diana Rossini
I say well played.
Chase Daniel
They're all well run.
Diana Rossini
They're billion organizations though the owner has.
Chase Daniel
No say in who to draft.
Diana Rossini
Well, I can tell you I know several teams where the owner has a say who they're going to draft. I mean, look at some of these draft meetings.
Chase Daniel
You think the owners are studying film? You think the owners are studying film or do they just want to sell jerseys?
Diana Rossini
I, I mean maybe pretending to watch the film, right? Probably sitting there with the GM with the clicker, you know, acting like he knows what he's seeing. Maybe. And maybe, look, some of these had. Maybe some of these owners do know what they're. They're looking at. I'm not sure who's really studied it, but at the end of the day, you know, when these draft prospects are meeting with these teams and they're going to dinner, there are very often times where the owner is joining them. Jimmy Haslow met with some of these guys, as for an example with the Cleveland Browns. So maybe it's a field thing. Maybe it's, I like this guy. So we'll see how this shakes out. We'll see what the Saints will do. I have a feeling by the next time we. We talk, we'll probably have an update of where the situation is and, and where they're going to go from here. And really what happens to Derek Carr in New Orleans? Do they stick with him and try to fix this, or do they say, you know what, this is going to be a distraction.
Chase Daniel
They already said it. It's a distraction. If anything, they put him on AR if they can't trade him.
Diana Rossini
What's wild is you mentioned, you did mention that you could see them going quarterback in this draft, but not with that number nine overall pick. I had someone in football tell me that, you know, this is a team that could be changing, you know, to an odd front and an edge rusher. Is it. It's a premium need for New Orleans.
Chase Daniel
Kim Jordan is not getting any old. Younger.
Diana Rossini
He's a star in television, but he's not getting any younger. You said getting older, by the way. It's getting.
Chase Daniel
I changed to getting younger. Relax.
Diana Rossini
Oh, I didn't, I didn't hear your correction.
Chase Daniel
Yeah, you didn't hear me because you.
Diana Rossini
I'm old and deaf. Great. But that being said, so having you on the show is always so great when we dive into the backup quarterback situation. Right. So we talked, we brushed on it real quick about how Joe Flac, he is now with Back with the Cleveland Browns, which. Can we just, like, do a timeout. They had the chance to have Joe Flacco last year after so much success, and we crushed Cleveland on the show for that. All because they were worried about Deshaun Watson. And I think I even recall I took the side of the organization in terms of my opinion on it. Of. All right, let's just give desean Watson every shot we possibly can psychologically and take out any conflict or issue or competitiveness. And obviously we saw what happened when they didn't have Joe Flacco and DeSean gets hurt and it's the Jameis Winston experience and whatever that was. So now he's back in Cleveland with Kevin Stefanski. He signs a one year, $4 million deal, up to 13 million though, with incentives, which.
Chase Daniel
Interesting. That tells me that he's not the starter right away.
Diana Rossini
Correct. So I think a lot of people saw that news and they said, well, Kenny Pickett's there, Joe Flacco's there, Cleveland's there. Not going quarterback. I read that as who's their starter? Who is going to be the starter for the Cleveland Browns?
Chase Daniel
Yeah, it's interesting to know like day one OTAs, like when they get on the field because the draft picks can't be there until a little bit later. Who takes the first snap. It's got to be Pickett, right?
Diana Rossini
No, it's got to be Joe.
Chase Daniel
You think so? Joey. Joey Flacco? I don't know. It's interesting. It'll be interesting to see.
Diana Rossini
Why'd you say pick it?
Chase Daniel
I think it'll rotate, but Pickett's been there longer. Even though he just got traded.
Diana Rossini
Yeah, I mean, thought was because they gave up assets for maybe. But yeah, I'm. If I'm Kevin Stefanski and Joe Flacco's run my system, Joe's gonna.
Chase Daniel
Yeah, that's a backup deal, though. That's. That's what I saw. It's a backup deal.
Diana Rossini
All right, so we'll. We'll see what they do. Okay, so then when I bring up Kirk Cousins, because we've talked about that on the show, that Kirk Cousins was on the board there with Atlanta. Atlanta doesn't want to take on all that salary. We know that. We'll see if that changes. Could you see Cleveland still engaging?
Chase Daniel
Yeah, I think. I think you have to. If you're Cleveland. I don't think they're going to take. I think they end up taking Travis Hunter probably. I think they probably go offense, even though I said they probably need to go defense. I think I could see Travis Hunter there. It automatically gives them a playmaker offensively that could play some nickel or corner in certain situations. That's how I view it. You got to get a quarterback, though. And so I don't know if I'm Kirk, do I want to go there? Like, do you think he's the, like, long term starter there? No, it's probably for a year. They're probably going to be in the market for a quarterback next year as well. I don't know if I'm Kirk, I'd probably rather go to Pittsburgh with those two receivers, DK Metcalf and George Pickens, if Aaron Rodgers doesn't go there. But then I feel like there's a possibility where he just stays put and makes, like, insane backup money.
Diana Rossini
I can't believe we're a week out from the draft and we don't know who the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback is.
Chase Daniel
No clue.
Diana Rossini
This is crazy. And I know Mike Tomlin will be cool about it and say everything's chill. You know they've got Chador Sanders visiting with them. Right. So all these draft prospects are wrapping up all their visits here over the next few days. Abdul Carter was with the New England Patriots after spending some time with the New York Giants. So you have all this stuff because everyone's wrapping up here, because here we are. Here we are at this point. So to me, you see Shador Sanders visiting with the Steelers. That tells me that the Steelers are probably looking at the quarterback market here coming up in the Chef, whether or not they have Aaron Rodgers or not. Yeah.
Chase Daniel
Knowing that they're drafting the quarterback, Diana, at 21, I'd be super surprised if they don't draft a quarterback at 21. And in fact, I could see them trading up if Adar or Shador is still on the board there. If not, I mean, look, there's been a lot of stuff about Jalen Milroe, and we had Dane Brugler on, and he loves Dale Milro. I like Jalen Milroe. It's a. It's a. It's an interesting project. But could you see Aaron Rodgers, Jalen Milroe in Pittsburgh? Yeah, Sign me up for.
Diana Rossini
Never Ends. All right, really quickly, before we go and take a break, I wanted to get your thoughts about something because I had a conversation with a head coach this morning about these meetings that they're all having in these buildings, about the character of players and weighing character versus talent and how it affects a locker room. And we were just ripping through some players this coach had drafted over the years that he went against his instinct of going for the good players. Character guy and going chasing the talent. And in his experience, it had never worked for him. He is flopped out, struck out. So he is very decisive about where he's at when it comes down to it. And he just kept trying to make the point of. It is my job to build the culture of this team, and then I hand it to the players to build it. And once it's established, it is hard to change what you are. And when you bring in a A. Let's just call it a bad apple. That's when you lose the locker room. That's when the problems start. So as someone that's been in locker rooms who's been with bad apples, bad players, have you ever been part of a team where, like, they draft a guy that you know is shady or just, I don't know, man, he's a me guy. How does that affect.
Chase Daniel
That's a good question. Maybe not drafted, but I've definitely been on some teams with some bad apples, whether they're veterans or they sign them in free agency. And the second he enters the locker room with a good culture built, you can tell, and he stands out like a sore thumb. Whether it's like, oh, the work ethic, whether it's like, I don't want to do this, whether it's talking down coaches, whether it's this and that. Look, you. You're on a team to build it up. You're not on a team to tear it down. Unfortunately, there are some players in some situations where maybe the head coach doesn't nip it in a bud right away. You see, I got that. Nip it in the bud. Not I was proud. Right. I got it down.
Diana Rossini
Chase one.
Chase Daniel
Where do you nip it in the bud? And I've had situ. I'm not going to say the team, but there have been situations where, you know, you sign a guy to a three year free agency deal and after six months of playing, the guy is cut because he just doesn't quite fit the culture. My biggest thing is those teams I've been on that are great. It's a player led accountability team, meaning the players take accountability to lead. Look at the Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones, Travis Kelsey, all three of those guys are in the front. And that's what Andy Reid told us when we sat down with them. I focused away from. I'm focused away from setting the culture. The culture's already set. I'm putting it on my players to do it because the players respect other players. Not that the players don't respect coaches, but when they see the leaders leading in the right way from the front, they want to attach themselves to greatness. And I think that's what you need on a team.
Diana Rossini
Yeah. By the way, has this been the quietest Chiefs offseason ever?
Chase Daniel
That's what they want.
Diana Rossini
I have not seen. I actually saw Patrick at the mask. I saw. I saw Patrick at the. At the Mavs game. I didn't see Travis at Coachella. I usually see him There. When I say see, I act like I attend these events. I don't go anywhere. I don't leave my house.
Chase Daniel
It's called gym at Coachella.
Diana Rossini
I would love to do that. You wear just like a net and you walk around and you sing. Stage coach.
Chase Daniel
Better. Stagecoach. Country. It's Country Coachella.
Diana Rossini
All right, before we take a break, guys, the NFL draft, as we've mentioned over and over, is almost here next Wednesday. So the day before the draft, Chase and I are going to do a live draft show. So scoop city, you'll be able to hear it in your feed on Thursday morning, but we're gonna go live on Wednesday, so make sure you check that out because that is probably where I dump my entire notebook leading up to the draft, because that's it, right? We might as well go for it the night before the draft so you can check us out on YouTube, watch us live. You can hear all of our mistakes in live form before they're edited. I know it probably shocks.
Chase Daniel
We don't make mistakes in live shows. But it's not. You turn it on like I've never seen before on these live shows. You don't make mistakes.
Diana Rossini
Oh, see? So I love you. Then on night one. Okay, so night one of the draft, make sure you check out the football podcast. Robert Mays hosts our mega show. I know it's natural probably as a viewer to want to see it on TV because there are some, definitely some benefits of it. I like watching ESPN or the NFL Network on. And I will have Robert's football show on my computer because the reaction and the analysis is so well done by the guys over on that show. So make sure you check that. They begin at 7:30 Eastern on Thursday, April 24th, and then they'll go again on Friday at 6:30 Eastern on April 25th. So we are. We are getting there, guys. So make sure you check that out when we get back. Chase, how much would you want to play college football these days in the this new Nil era?
Chase Daniel
You have no idea.
Diana Rossini
Oh, I know. I need to get your thoughts on what's going on in Tennessee. I want to talk to you about just the landscape and how the NCAA just to me, needs to get a grip of this thing. We'll be right back.
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Chase Daniel
24 culinary showdowns for 24 hours straight, which chef will out cook outpace, outlast the competition?
Diana Rossini
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Chase Daniel
All new 24 and 24. Last chef standing Sunday night at eight. See it first on Food Network. Stream next day on Max.
Diana Rossini
Back here on Scoop City, where I know the NFL is always catching our attention and it's usually what we're talking about here. But we cannot ignore what's going on in the college football world. Where Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaliava situation. I know you had a lot to say about what's going on there. And just to give the quick backstory here, Nico was at Tennessee making around $2 million, wanted to make 4 million, didn't show up to practice. And it was essentially the college version of a holdout. And the school decided, you know what, Nico, we're good. So he now entered the transfer portal and this has just become the story because he was one of the first multimillion dollar college nil athletes here. So we knew his name for a reason, despite the fact that I know I hacked it up a little bit there. So this story goes down and you immediately responded to it with, with some vigor. How do you see this thing?
Chase Daniel
It's just an interesting situation. Obviously, you know, played college football at a really high level. I'm all for players getting paid. Let me just, let me just preface that and say it again. I am not a hater when it comes to this. I want these young men to make all the money in the world that they can because quite honestly, some of these schools are making hundreds of millions of dollars just in their conference with football being the primary breadwinner in all this situation. I saw this as, this was not an attack on Nico. I saw this as a complete undoing of any guidelines or rules or guardrails of the NCAA and the NIL era as it is. This is a major roadblock, in my opinion. I say that because a college kid, okay, he's a college kid. He was making $2.2 million at Tennessee over the life of the deal. I think he was due $8 million, Diana. He was unhappy. He decides he wants to sit out. He's really the true first. I'm not going to show to practice today. I'm not going to communicate. That's where I think Nico went wrong. Josh Hypel, the head coach for the Tennessee Volunteers, he had no idea he wasn't going to be there. And it was right before the spring game. Okay? So first and foremost, I want $4 million. I want almost 50, 100% more. Because of what? Because of nine touchdowns and three interceptions against SEC opponents. They made the playoff. I get that. He's a very young person. I have issue with the people in these players corners that are giving them bad advice. That is my issue with the whole college thing. And when you look at it, the college football calendar, that's what I have a huge issue with. You had teams, okay, and players that were in the playoffs. Right before the playoffs start, there's a transfer portal window that starts. They're trying to get more money. Everyone is. If your team makes the playoffs, smu, Tennessee, Ohio State, you have players in the middle of a playoff run when you're chasing a championship, say, I want more money. Let's renegotiate before the game even happened. Tell me why that's on a calendar. And then there's a second free agency period, right? Think about it as NFL, okay. Could you imagine a second free agency period, Diana, after OTAs? After OTAs, when your whole system is set in stone? And then that's my issue. You're not allowing these colleges to be competitive. There has to be a guideline or some guardrails to keep it in. Now, I think with this new rev share coming up, I think that matters. I think that'll sort of even the playing field for a lot of these colleges. But when you do this, first of all, it just makes you look bad. Like Nico. It makes you look bad, okay? Because you're setting out and think about your teammates. There's. Do we forget in the game of college, there are teammates and your team. What do you think your teammates think of you when you do this? And that's what Hypo said. He said there is no one bigger than the Tennessee Volunteers program. And this was a smart move, in my opinion, to move on from Nico. Now, they might suffer, but I think they'll be just fine. They still got some money they can spend on the quarterback, but that's just my whole issue as a whole. Sorry for the.
Diana Rossini
So, no, no, I, I see your, your point and I've heard it from other people as well in the NFL space. I can tell you there was a lot of reaction because it is the Wild west error right now with nil. It is difficult to understand. It's different, difficult to navigate. Nobody has a playbook. I would be embarrassed if I was the NCAA right now of just how this has played out. I just feel like it's out of control. And turning down more money to stay tells something to teams versus making it about you and making yourself bigger than the team. Whether you like that or not, that is the reality. And NFL teams are watching that. I had conversations with people in football about this, and they're talking about this now on these draft prospect visits where they're sharing their stories. And I spoke to a GM who said we had a guy in who shared with us the amount of money that he could have received if he went to a different school, but he didn't want to do it because he had that same idea that you shared, which is he owed his teammates. They were building something together. And I, I don't think there's anyone guilty of anything in this. I feel for Nico from a space of. He's just trying to do what's best in his mind. Finance, free market, knowing that you don't know. But at the same time, you know, you see the other side of how maybe in the early years of his career here he will be making more money, but perhaps he could be making so much more by sort of shouting to the world like, look, yeah, I could do this, I could make more, but I chose this. I chose this program. But then again, does character get, get you paid? I don't know this answer, and it applies to a lot of different fields. Well, doing the right thing and, and.
Chase Daniel
I, and I agree that it's a free market. And like I said, I'm all for guys getting paid. We're talking about a college athlete making $4 million a year, though. And I get, you know, we don't know if he's going to play pro. We think he has the talent to play pro. We don't know what's going to happen. We don't know where he's going to end up, all that stuff. But for me, it's like it's bigger than one person now. He sort of set sort of the tone of like, oh, man, this is what could happen. That's sort of why Nick Saban he had the foresight to be like, hey, I don't want to deal with this stuff. Like, I want to go. And to me, like, what's the end game here? The ncaa, they need a small governing body to set these rules and these guidelines, so you're able to maneuver quickly on stuff that's ever changing. In a landscape that. I talked to people at Missouri, where I went, they don't know what the heck's coming down the pipeline in four months. Like, how do you know? You're literally just flying by the seat of your pants eventually. And I think this is where teams, some teams have hired these GMs, these general managers of these programs. They're gonna go to a pro style level of front office and talking to some head coaches in the ncaa, in the fcs, that's the only way to do it. You're going to need a collective bargaining agreement eventually. Like, unless they can figure out something, you're going to need a cba, you're going to need a salary cap. You're going to need all these little different levers that you can pull to protect the program. And I'm not pro program. I'm not pro players. I don't get that twisted. This is the reality of the situation. Yeah.
Diana Rossini
Yes. Look, Nick Cosmeider, he's our Denver Broncos beat reporter, but he did a more of a national perspective on all this over at the Athletic. The new NIL era and how it transformed draft evaluations for teams. Okay. So it's like this little niche way to look at it all, how the player pool changes, because a lot of the players who don't think they'll be picked in the top rounds will return to school for NIL checks and then declare when they're older. You have that factored into it. Terry Fontenot, the Atlanta Falcons gm, shared with Nick that it's a unique landscape that we're still figuring out. And I think that's essentially what Chase and I are sharing here. We don't have the answers. I'm very good at finding problems and addressing them. I'm not a good problem solver. I don't know how to fix it. But this is just going to continue to snowball and. And Nico's really the first really big example. But he ain't gonna be the last one. He's gonna be the last one. I think we're gonna see a lot more of this. All right, with that, but let's take a quick break. Chase, we've tiptoed around this long Enough. We've done it. Let's do it. Let's talk Masters. We'll be right back.
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Diana Rossini
All right, back here on Scoop City, and I know we spent some time talking about the quarterback situation at the start of the show. I was driving around over the weekend and you know, I love my sports talk radio. I can't get enough of it. And here in the New York, New Jersey area, WFAN is, you know, it's king. Oh, yeah, and they were talking about the Giants quarterback situation, and my buddy Salicata had just a take on how he views where the New York Giants franchise is at quarterback. And I wanted to play it for you because I really just want to get your thoughts. So let's take a listen to this.
Sal Licata
They had the sixth pick last year and there were no quarterbacks good enough for them. But Sean Payton could draft Bo Nix and turn him into a playoff quarterback. Atlanta, who already paid a billion dollars for Kirk Cousins, can identify Michael Penix and say, holy crap, this guy fell to us. We have to take him so other teams can take a risk even in not ideal situations. With Dable and Jay, it's like, oh, oh no. It's got to be perfect. Everything's got to be perfect. This guy's got no. If it's not Jaden Daniels or it's not Drake May, we can't take him. No, we need a wide receiver.
Chase Daniel
Wrong.
Sal Licata
You were wrong last year. Now this year it's going to be oh no, no, we don't like Shador Sanders. We're not going to trade down for Jackson Dart. We're going to get Abdul Carter with the best player available. Wrong again. How many years is this going to go down the road? Now drafting Shador Sanders could turn out to be a big mistake, but I'd at least respect the fact that they took a risk in getting the most valuable commodity in the NFL, especially after they screwed up last year by not doing it.
Chase Daniel
That is what I imagine sports talk radio in the New York and New Jersey area to be.
Diana Rossini
Absolutely yelling are not going to listen to the content. I knew you were going to comment about the language, tone and volume we use. Like that right there is my kitchen table. Table like Sal lives in my house.
Chase Daniel
He's got great points and, but also from an outsider. Right. He, he is obviously on the inside. Knows I respect his opinion. But do you want to take a chance on Chador Sanders? Like that's, that's where we've gotten to as New York Giants fans is you just want to take a risk and that's a huge risk. If you hit, if you hit or you miss at quarterbacks. When you draft a quarterback in the first round, it's like a 40 to 35% hit rate on it. That means 65% of the time you are going to miss on a first round quarterback. That. So that's all I'm saying. But yeah, it's a great, it's a great, it's a great call. It's a great call. It just the yelling.
Diana Rossini
Knew the fact. Did you just feel like you're talking.
Chase Daniel
To me so loud in my ear?
Diana Rossini
It was the point that I know. I apologize for those outside the New York area who watch and listen to us but that's, that's, that's norm for me. That's my life. The fact that this organization knew about what this draft class was like and granted they had Daniel Jones then though at least they had that experience to lean on and then it, it just, I feel like 2024 for the Giants, even a little bit of 23 will be the one that this regime will is they're going to look back on this in 20 years and just be like, oh, and some of them about Malik Neighbors, though.
Chase Daniel
And Malik Neighbors is the guy. So I'm glad they have Malik Neighbors because I'm like. And quite honestly, I would have taken Malik Neighbors over Bo Nicks or Michael.
Diana Rossini
Penix like you're saying, if you were in their shoes.
Chase Daniel
Yeah, you don't.
Diana Rossini
Because with what you found out.
Chase Daniel
Well, that's a, that's, that's unfair. You didn't know that when you were doing it. When do we know what we know? Last year I would have taken. Malik Neighbors was a freaking superstar.
Diana Rossini
Their point.
Chase Daniel
You didn't know what Bo Nix was going to be. You didn't know what, Michael.
Diana Rossini
That Raheem Morris and Sean Payton both knew that those two quarterbacks were not perfect, but they could see the good and figure out a way to get the best out of them. Look, the jury's still out, I think on Bo. We know he's going to be good because of. He'll be under the tutelage of Sean Payton.
Chase Daniel
We don't know what.
Diana Rossini
Michael, is Brian Dable considered to be that great too?
Chase Daniel
Yes, no, that's true. That's true. So you got a point there.
Diana Rossini
The point is play into the, the, the strong characteristics of your HC which he can get a quarterback to play. And, and unfortunately we just, we haven't, we haven't seen it on full display. So we'll see what they decide to do. And the reason why we just keep going back to the Giants because they are the most talked about team right now in football because nobody has a clue what they're going to do. And it is hard to figure out what is best for them. I know Sal wants to see them take quarterback, but I know there's some fans out there who just want to see best player. Val. Knowing that maybe they can just continue to build and build and build. Yeah, I know. Best player in the world right now. Rory McElroy. Guess so.
Chase Daniel
Yes. Yes. It's not even Grand Slam. Six of them, Diana. Six. There's only been six. There's been two people since 1966 to do a Tiger woods and Roy McElroy. Come on now.
Diana Rossini
By saying all he needed was a par on 18 to win this thing.
Chase Daniel
Just.
Diana Rossini
What is wrong with you?
Chase Daniel
A sandy par. A sandy par would have been nice. He was in the bunk. Okay. Right. Bunker. He had a really nice bunker shot. In fact, did you know that these pros and These golfers, they almost prefer if they're not on the green to be in bunkers, because it's a perfect lie. Every single time. He had a perfect lie, he was even with the hole. Left himself maybe six foot, five foot to it. And did you see. Did you see the graphic that CBS put up? Said four career Grand Slam. I was beyond. And then he missed it, and I'm like, no. CVS jinxed him, but he ended up doing it, man. It was. It was unbelievable.
Diana Rossini
It was. It was. It was a roller coaster. Everyone was stressed. At one point, I was getting so angry, I left the room to act like I had to do something, but I didn't have to do anything. It's almost like when you watch a scary movie and you know the shark is coming and you want to see it, but you don't want to see it. It's kind of how I felt in that moment. I. I wanted to see him win it, but I had a horrible feeling about it, and I didn't want to believe it. And then, of course, in the end, the emotion of it all.
Chase Daniel
Did you see him? That's the emotion. That's the emotion, like, the. The emotion that he had when he went down to his knees emotion. That was, like, euphoria.
Diana Rossini
Part of him. That was like, the biggest fight with yourself that you've ever seen, right?
Chase Daniel
Weight off your shoulders, man. Oh, so good. What's the.
Diana Rossini
What's. What's the wildest way you've ever celebrated anything? Because I was thinking, like, to show that I would be horrified to show that much emotion publicly, but I get it. Like, you have no control over it. You just won the Masters.
Chase Daniel
I think the wildest way. I mean, it was obviously not in public, but because I love sports. I think watching my kid when he was like, two and a half. Smoke a baseball in our basement in Chicago. Like a. Like a soft baseball, obviously, with, like, one of those bats. Just pitch into a. To him, and I. I think I got it on camera. Maybe not, but him just. He's like two, and just. Wow. I was like, oh. And, like, I just started dancing around, like, flopping like a fish. Like, so excited.
Diana Rossini
Yeah.
Chase Daniel
Like, pumping them up and stuff like that. Probably. Probably that it wasn't anything, like, crazy, like, Super Bowl. I didn't play. It didn't matter, you know?
Diana Rossini
Yeah, I get it. But still. No, that makes sense. I was in college, and my junior year, I was just on a hot streak. I was scoring every game, and especially in soccer. You don't change it up if. If your foot's hot.
Chase Daniel
Yeah, for sure.
Diana Rossini
Just keep running the same place.
Chase Daniel
I've never heard that. Oh, yeah, that's what they say.
Diana Rossini
I could not miss. I mean, I say it.
Chase Daniel
I don't know if your foot was hot.
Diana Rossini
My foot was high. Like I. The ball. I just found the ball. In every scrum, I found the ball. It was nice.
Chase Daniel
Yeah. That's awesome.
Diana Rossini
So it was like the fourth game in a row, and it was parents weekend, and we were playing William Mary, and there were 10 seconds left on the clock, maybe even 30, but it was. It was ticking down, and we were down one goal, and my teammate crossed the ball, diving header, upper 90. I score. Awesome. Great. Best goal I've ever had in my life. But an idiot. We. They all. My teammates are idiots. They all jumped on me, right? Just like you always see on TV. My center back, who is probably 185 pounds, jumped on me and popped my shoulder out. And so then I wound up missing like six weeks. Couldn't get the magic back.
Chase Daniel
Oh, that would piss me off.
Diana Rossini
Like a joyous occasion. And I know the follow up question should be, you play soccer. Why do you need your arm? But the pain of it was so bad.
Chase Daniel
What about the kicker?
Diana Rossini
I have a weird shoulder.
Chase Daniel
Oh, that is a weird shoulder. Don't show that to the Internet. Don't show that to the Internet. Hide that.
Diana Rossini
I know. All right, we're have kenj, our editor, blur it because you don't want to see it. It's so gross. It still hasn't popped back in, I don't think. But so it was, first of all, it was also embarrassing to be like, hey, I can't play, you know, in the next few games because my shoulder, because Kara popped it out.
Chase Daniel
That made me mad.
Diana Rossini
But back to Rory. Just all the emotion. And obviously, as. As a parent now, watching, watching the father with the. With the child, to me, just, whew, that'll kill me. So, that being said, I think I know your number one favorite sporting day of the year, but I figured we'd give our top three. All right, so starting, let's go backwards. So let's go three, two, one.
Chase Daniel
Three.
Diana Rossini
You want to go three, two, one or one, two?
Chase Daniel
No, no, three, two, one. Now we gotta. We gotta leave the audience watching our show a little bit longer.
Diana Rossini
If you are. We love you. Okay, three for you. Your third favorite sporting day.
Chase Daniel
It's probably gotta be, I'm a baseball guy. Probably Major League baseball. Opening day. Opening day is like, awesome. Like, it's Just especially, like, Padres game that we took, like, took the kid to just, like, it's a big deal. And, like, I remember going to Rangers opening days as a kid. Like, it was like, a big deal. You miss school, you get out, you go. Because the Rangers were good back then. I still are good right now. But opening day, I think opening day.
Diana Rossini
But now I just associate it with the cold because it's cold here. Like, opening day, Yankee Stadium was, I think it was like, 35 degrees, 75 in San Diego. My brother and all his buddies went. They sent me pictures, and it looked miserable. But it is a sign to us that spring is coming. So it does excite me. But for me, day one, March Madness, that is my favorite because I like the concept of everyone at work isn't paying attention. I like when we're all in it together. Just like on Sunday at the Masters, I knew majority of people were on their couch watching that, and I just. I like that idea of everyone's doing something at the same time and moving for something.
Chase Daniel
Yeah.
Diana Rossini
So I enjoy that. All right. Too.
Chase Daniel
That's a good one. Number two, college football rivalry. Probably, like, the rivalry games.
Diana Rossini
Yeah.
Chase Daniel
Circumstance behind them. Like, I remember, like, Mizzou, Kansas, when we were playing. Right. But, like, there's so many rivalry games, and it's. It's cool that college football has made that. That is rivalry week. Like, this is what we're gonna do. There's also. Also so many upsets on that week. Like, more than you would think. Like, even though, like, some rivalry teams are, like, top 25 and some suck. Like, the ones that suck usually beat them. So it's cool.
Diana Rossini
When I used to anchor SportsCenter and we would do highlight shows, I used to love the rivalry games because they always fill the highlights with cool moments, too. To add to it, for me, my second favorite thing in sports is just game one of the World Series. I think I've shared this with you. I grew up in a baseball household. That was what we did. It was all New York Yankees. So I've seen tons and tons of World Series. And so just. I associate that time of year just with great childhood memories of being so excited that my favorite players from, you know, I'm not gonna go through all the Yankees. But so for me, that's it. Number one, Sunday at the Masters. That's it. Sunday at the Masters. Okay. I got a weird one, but it's true. It's the Monday after week one of the NFL. Okay. And here's why. Because we have been talking for months leading into week one of what we want to see, what we're expecting. And then Monday morning, everyone has the most outrageous takes and reaction and over the top headlines that I enjoy. I feel like, well, here we go. And we are off. That's why I like it.
Chase Daniel
That is a weird one. Overreaction Monday. I get it.
Diana Rossini
Oh, yeah, it's just like that. You wake up Monday and everyone's freaking out because this happened or this guy stinks, or that guy's better than we thought. And so I look forward to it because it just. It just means football's back, baby. And gosh, we still have a long time to go before we get there. Any other sporting events that you look forward to seeing. Anything else that you got coming up here that you just can't wait to witness?
Chase Daniel
No, I'm on vacation. I'm chilling.
Diana Rossini
Sports can wait. I played pickleball for the first time yesterday. Yeah?
Chase Daniel
How did you like it? Are you any good? Probably not.
Diana Rossini
I'm very good. Why do you always underestimate my athletic ability? I was four sports all state.
Chase Daniel
That was a joke. That was a joke. I'm sorry.
Diana Rossini
Oh, yeah.
Chase Daniel
Go ahead and shine on us.
Diana Rossini
How about you and I at some point here, we get together, not only have some cocktails because we enjoy that I would like to compete with you, whether it's golf, tennis. I'm just trying to think of. The problem is you're. You're scoop there. There we go. This summer we are going to scoop city Olympics. Okay. By the way, we are gonna fight and I cannot wait. Money on the T. You know what we should do? We should collect money from people around the NFL for this and then we'll donate it. Oh, I get people put money on me. I bet you more people. You know what? In the comment section, if you've made it this far, let me know. Who are you taking in an overall athletic event? Chase or Diana? And we will see and we will tally up all the answers. You're just letting me win right now, aren't you? I can see it in your face. You're like, you're gonna. You wanna. The thing is, I can already hear my husband being like, you realize Chase played professional football at the highest of level. Like I don't want to hear it.
Chase Daniel
Pretty good baseball player too.
Diana Rossini
You also, you're really good at baseball. What position?
Chase Daniel
Pitched and played center field. We could do slow pitch softball. So you can hit the ball better.
Diana Rossini
I played. I was a pitcher. And I was third baseman.
Chase Daniel
You might beat me in basketball though shooting like truly like I'm not good at all or sport.
Diana Rossini
Yeah I I wasn't the best scorer truthfully but you can't score on me. I'm good at defense. Does that shock you all up in your girl? I hope we were not all up in your girl here in this show. We had so much fun with you guys. Thanks for hanging out with us days until we get to the draft. We're gonna blow this thing out next week. We can't wait. We're gonna have three shows actually. So in your feed on the podcast or in your podcast feed for Scoop City, you're gonna see three different show shows all next week. We're going to just dump everything we have all of our thoughts, all of our opinions. So hang with us. We'll have another show later this week. Chase is wrapping up his trip and that'll do it for us.
Chase Daniel
Bye guys. Talk to me next time.
Scoop City: A Show About the NFL – Detailed Summary
Release Date: April 15, 2025
In this episode of Scoop City, hosts Dianna Russini and Chase Daniel delve deep into pressing NFL topics, primarily focusing on the New Orleans Saints' quarterback situation with Derek Carr and the rising draft stock of QB prospect Tyler Schuck. Additionally, they touch upon relevant college football issues, including the NCAA's NIL era and its implications.
The episode opens with an in-depth analysis of Derek Carr's uncertain future with the New Orleans Saints. Dianna and Chase explore the rumor mill surrounding Carr's potential trade and the factors influencing the Saints' decision-making process.
Dianna Russini (04:07):
"There's good stuff going on... head coaches, GMs are having serious conversations about the character and the type of guys they want to bring in."
Chase Daniel (05:55):
"So the Saints have a major problem with Diana, Derek Carr, the shoulder injury. I think it's a lot of fluff."
Key Points:
Contract Restructuring: The Saints recently restructured Carr's contract, creating a significant cap hit ($20.5 million) if they decide to move on from him. This move appears designed to make Carr feel valued and possibly deter a trade.
Coaching Dynamics: With Kellen Moore stepping into the head coaching role, there's speculation about his influence on the quarterback situation. The Saints may be positioning themselves to draft a new quarterback to ensure long-term stability.
Potential Trade Factors: The discussion hints that Carr might be seeking a trade, possibly due to unhappiness with his current role or the Saints' future plans. Chase draws parallels with past quarterback transitions to illustrate the potential outcomes.
Tyler Schuck emerges as a focal point in the upcoming NFL Draft discussions. Dianna and Chase assess his increasing draft stock and what makes him an attractive option for teams like the Saints.
Chase Daniel (16:04):
"Tyler Schuck is a player in this draft who, a week out from the draft, his stock is rising."
Dianna Russini (18:24):
"A head coach in the NFL told me that he thinks Tyler Schuck is the best quarterback in this class."
Key Points:
Physical Attributes: Standing at 6'5", Schuck possesses ideal quarterback dimensions, although his height borders on being too tall, raising concerns about his mobility and mechanics under pressure.
Performance and Potential: Despite an injury history, Schuck's performance on the field—nine touchdowns and three interceptions against SEC opponents—cements his reputation as a promising talent.
Comparison to Peers: Schuck is compared to other quarterbacks like Shador Sanders and Jackson Dart, highlighting his unique traits that could make him a standout pick in the first round.
The hosts briefly discuss Joe Flacco's recent signing with the Browns, analyzing its implications for the team's quarterback hierarchy.
Dianna Russini (23:16):
"He signs a one-year, $4 million deal, up to $13 million with incentives."
Chase Daniel (23:30):
"That tells me that he's not the starter right away."
Key Points:
Role Definition: Flacco's contract suggests a backup role, likely taking snaps during OTAs to provide competition without displacing current starters like Josh Hypel.
Team Strategy: The Browns appear to be bolstering their quarterback depth, possibly preparing for future uncertainties or providing mentorship to younger quarterbacks like Treek Hawkins-Dillard.
A significant portion of the discussion shifts to college football, specifically the controversy surrounding Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaliava and the broader implications of the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) regulations.
Chase Daniel (34:16):
"This is a major roadblock... it's a complete undoing of any guidelines or rules of the NCAA."
Dianna Russini (39:42):
"Nico's really the first really big example. But he ain't gonna be the last one."
Key Points:
Iamaliava's Holdout: Nico Iamaliava's demand for increased compensation led to his withdrawal from team activities, sparking debates about player rights versus team cohesion.
Impact on NCAA Policies: The situation highlights the challenges the NCAA faces in regulating player payments and maintaining competitive balance amidst evolving NIL rules.
Future Implications: Both hosts express concerns that such cases could become commonplace, potentially destabilizing team dynamics and recruiting processes across college football.
Dianna and Chase explore the delicate balance between a player's talent and their character, emphasizing how the latter can influence team chemistry and performance.
Chase Daniel (28:23):
"Those teams I've been on that are great, it's a player-led accountability team... players take accountability to lead."
Dianna Russini (27:46):
"How does that affect... have you ever been part of a team where... a me guy?"
Key Points:
Culture Building: Successful teams often rely on player leaders to uphold and propagate a positive culture, minimizing the impact of any "bad apples."
Accountability Mechanisms: Effective teams implement systems where players feel responsible for maintaining team standards, ensuring harmony and collective focus.
Trade-offs: The discussion underscores that while talent is crucial, a player's character can significantly impact long-term team success and locker room morale.
Drawing from local sports talk radio, Dianna and Chase analyze the New York Giants' ongoing quarterback dilemma, dissecting commentators' perspectives and potential outcomes.
Dianna Russini (44:06):
"I wanted to play it for you because I really just want to get your thoughts."
Sal Licata (44:44 – 45:37):
"Sean Payton could draft Bo Nix and turn him into a playoff quarterback... If it's not Jaden Daniels or it's not Drake May, we can't take him."
Key Points:
Draft Strategies: Sal Licata criticizes the Giants' cautious approach to drafting quarterbacks, suggesting they miss out on valuable talent by not taking calculated risks.
Historical Context: References to past drafts (e.g., Malik Neighbors vs. Bo Nix) illustrate the uncertainty and long-term consequences of drafting decisions.
Fan Sentiment: The conversation reflects a mix of frustration and hope among Giants fans, highlighting the high stakes and passionate investment in the team's future quarterback.
Towards the episode's end, Dianna and Chase share personal anecdotes and favorite sporting events, offering listeners glimpses into their lives beyond NFL analysis.
Dianna Russini (53:40 – 55:09):
"March Madness is my favorite because I like the concept of everyone at work isn't paying attention. I like when we're all in it together."
Chase Daniel (55:53 – 58:50):
"Opening Day is awesome... Watching my kid when he was two and a half, smoking a baseball in our basement... I started dancing around, flopping like a fish."
Key Points:
Emotional Connections: The hosts express how certain sports events evoke strong personal memories and emotions, reinforcing their passion for sports.
Diverse Interests: Beyond football, their interests span across baseball, soccer, and major golf tournaments like the Masters, showcasing their multifaceted engagement with sports.
Dianna and Chase conclude the episode by promoting upcoming live shows and encouraging listener interaction.
Dianna Russini (50:51 – 58:50):
"Who are you taking in an overall athletic event? Chase or Diana? And we will see and we will tally up all the answers."
Chase Daniel (59:38 – End):
"Talk to me next time."
Key Points:
Live Draft Show: Announcement of a live draft show scheduled for the day before the NFL Draft, offering real-time reactions and analyses.
Listener Engagement: Encouragement for listeners to participate in polls and discussions, fostering a community around the podcast.
Notable Quotes:
"No one knows how this draft is all going to come together."
Dianna Russini (04:07)
"You're going on vacation, just us, yeah, sure. But with kids it's like, ah, I..."
Chase Daniel (02:58)
"It's poker with the draft picks right there."
Chase Daniel (08:14)
"It's fishy. Like your word says. It's what was my word? Not what was my word."
Chase Daniel (14:18)
"Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones, Travis Kelsey, all three of those guys are in the front."
Chase Daniel (28:23)
"We don't have the answers. I'm very good at finding problems and addressing them. I’m not a good problem solver."
Dianna Russini (39:42)
This episode of Scoop City provides listeners with a comprehensive look into the evolving NFL landscape, emphasizing the complexities of team dynamics, player movements, and the overarching impact of college football's changing regulations. Dianna and Chase blend their expertise and personal insights to deliver an engaging and informative discussion for football enthusiasts.